The Darkness Within
by KiyodraN494
Summary: When demon activity begins to rise in Panrasia, Camilla must set out to find the source of this sudden activity, gathering companions on the way as she heads to the unknown. But betrayal and death lurks on the horizon, and time is running out. Will this tale have a happy ending, or will it simply end in a tragedy?
1. Prologue

**The Darkness Within**

**-Prologue-**

**The human names of the characters are used. If you do not know them, I advise you Google them.**

* * *

Pandaria, a massive continent that dominates most of the globe is divided into five regions; Affria, the Ameros, Europia, Asariya, and Nordica. These regions are reined by a king and queen, and are further divided up into countries that also have their own rulers.

These regions all fall under the rule of the Royal Family of Nordica, who has been in power for nearly eight hundred years. The Royal Family consists of five leaders, or role bearers; the King, the Queen, the Rook, the Bishop, and the Knight, each with his or her own sacred duties to his or her own kingdom and Pandaria as a whole.

There are nations outside of the rule of the Royal Family, but they are island nations, many of which are either small or lie relatively far away.

But for the most part, Pandaria has remained in peace for seven hundred years for the most far. However, dark creatures lurk in the shadows of the massive empire. Demons and creatures that everyone knows to fear; from krakens to dragons, along with, wyverns, mermaids, werewolves, kelpies, selkies, sirens, rocs, thunderbirds, Minotaurs, hellhounds, and hundreds upon thousands more.

The creatures that are in the end, the source of all nightmares; the creatures that are the reason humans fear the dark. As a whole, the demonic race is relatively primitive, but still powerful. Only the strongest of leaders could unite the demons under one cause. Very few would be stupid or brave enough to try.

There is a legend of a man… He was the man that nearly took the entire world into his grasp after an ungodly conquest that left millions dead. He was simply dubbed the Demon Prince.

* * *

_Back in the early years, before King Erasmus united Pandaria under Nordica rule a foreign man from the depths of the ice-locked lands of Antrica arrived along the coast of the Kingdom of Britain, wrapped thickly in mystery and charm. He quickly became renowned for his haunting and beautiful tales of crystal cities, a utopian society, and strange beasts the likes of which no one from Pandaria had ever seen before._

_It was through these stories that he managed to work his way into the royal court of Britain. Within days of his arrival, he seduced Queen Cinnabar, securing his position in court. Following this secret affair, he quickly began to rise through the court, replacing the ministers and advisors that died from mysterious accidents, illnesses, and suicides. He began to fill other positions with certain people, people who were under his control._

_Within a year of his arrival at the court, the king was found dead in the royal chambers, dead from unknown causes. Queen Cinnabar soon married the man and he became king, known to all as 'King Delmas.' No proof of this being his actual name has been uncovered. Ten months into their marriage, Queen Cinnabar gave birth to a male heir that they names Qorran. The queen died the next day, supposedly of birthing complications. The kingdom was now entirely in Delmas' control._

_Ever since Delmas had become part of the court, the Kingdom of Britain had been expanding outwards, until it had enveloped the neighboring kingdoms of Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. Under Delmas, the kingdom began to expand even further. However, he did not go about this using a normal army. Demons began to appear on his side of the battlefield, proving to be superior in many cases before they were overwhelmed. The kingdoms of Belgium, France, and Austria quickly fell to the demon-human armies that Delmas had raised._

_As his armies grew, more and more kingdoms began to fall to his might. Within five years of the start of his campaign, he held most of modern-day Europia in his hands. Leaders of other countries, who thought Delmas might stop after one or two kingdoms, were terrified that he might turn his eyes to their country next. The countries began to train their armies quickly to prepare for the oncoming war._

_King Orn of Sweden proposed an alliance with several countries; Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, the United States of Ameros, Canada, China, Japan, and Egypt. This alliance became known as the Great Panrasian Pact. The other countries still free of Delmas remained out of the way of the budding war, not wanting to join before they were sure of the outcome. The Swiss Confederacy decided to become neutral, and it has remained neutral ever since._

_Six years after Delmas ascended the throne, the Great Panrasian Army began to move against Delmas. Man and demon clashed at battlefield after battlefield, turning the ground beneath them into a brown and red marsh._

_At first, the demons were the victors, constantly overpowering the quickly demoralizing Panrasian Army; they were simply too great, too strong._

_Towards the end of the first year of battle, a man appeared. No man ever saw his face, and few heard his voice, but in him the Army managed to find strength. The first time he appeared, it was in the midst of a battle near the border of Prussia and Germany. The Panrasian Army was suffering massive losses and was being pushing back deep into German territory. Then the Shadow Knight, as they came to call him, appeared. With astounding ease, he cut a path through the demons, slaying them left and right. The men began to rally at this, and leapt back into battle with a renewed sense of hope. They won that battle, the first since the war had begun._

_That began the turning point of the war; the Panrasian Army began to sweep the demon hordes back into the island nation of Britain. Two years after the war began, they had Britain surrounded. Halfway through the year, they had London surrounded. With London surrounded and his army decimated, King Delmas decided that he would rather die than surrender._

_When the Panrasian army broke through the demon lines into London and to the castle where Delmas and he son were located, they found a pit, the embers within still hot. Within, they found two bodies; that of a grown man and a young child. There is no doubt that Delmas was killed; dozens of witnesses swear to the fact of that he pushed his son into the pit and jumped in after him, into the roaring inferno they had going on at the time._

_But there are discrepancies about whether or not that the child's body was actually his son's. Despite all of the witnesses, not a single one can state that it truly was the young prince Qorran._

_As time began to pass, the rumors began to die down, but the fear of Delmas did not. He is not something to tell your children about to scare them out of doing something. His is a name rarely uttered, if at all. Only in situations where it is absolutely necessary is he mentioned, and even then, he is known as the Demon Prince._

* * *

**-Prologue END-**

**Hi. It's Kiyohara. I decided to start a solo fanfic, obviously on the topic of _Axis Powers Hetalia_. I showed the first chapter to Xandra before I had even thought about a prologue. She looked at it and was like, "What? I don't understand! Who are these people!?" I probably should have told her I was using human names XD. As always, I do not own Hetalia or the characters, except for various OCs (Delmas, Orn, Camilla, etc.) Those I will tell you if I own them. I will also tell you a characters name if Himaruya has not yet named them.**

** Aaaaanyways, I hope you enjoy **_**The Darkness Within**_** and a review would be absolutely amazing. For now thought, viso gero! (Goodbye in Lithuanian). Or at least, that's what Microsoft Word is telling me.**


	2. Chapter 1

**The Darkness Within**

**-Chapter 1-**

* * *

_I wish I couldn't remember their faces, bloodstained and blank of everything, their eyes which were once full of life were then full of nothing but death. If I could, I would drink the memories away, drowning them in every sip of alcohol that passed my lips. But to do so would dishonor the memory of them. It would dishonor the memory of those who sacrificed themselves for a weakling; a weakling like me._

* * *

Camilla knocked on the door to the Royal Family's sitting room, where the supreme family of Nordica often hosted her when they were discussing private matters. Three knocks, a two second pause, two slow knocks, a five second pause, and then ten rapid knocks, a two second pause, and two more knocks sounded as Camilla knocked out the code in order to be admitted. The three locks on the other side of the door clicked and scraped as they slide out of the locked position, and then the door opened, showing a small blonde boy with bright blue eyes and a big smile.

"Camilla!" the boy said and he flung himself at her, wrapping his arms and legs around her midsection, his head in the crook of her neck and shoulder. "Hello Peter," she said with a smile, wrapping her arms around the young boy so that he would not fall. "You've gotten bigger since I last saw you."

He leaned back and grinned, "Of course! You've been gone for three months! The doctors measured me last week and said I had grown two inches!" Camilla smiled. Peter was so energetic; she wondered how Tino and Berwald managed to keep track of him. Then again, they did have the help of Emil and Lukas, not to mention the countless servants and others that all kept an eye out for the small heir to the Nordica throne. Camilla stepped into the room and she the door behind her, struggling a little bit to lock it with one hand while trying not to drop Peter.

She set him down and yanked one of the bolts back into place, "Tino, you really should have someone grease the locks," she said and turned around, walking across the room to the couch and throwing herself down onto the soft and plush gold cushions. Peter followed in suit, ever the adoring child of his favorite 'aunt.' Across from the couch she occupied, there was a small oak and glass table with several stacks of papers and folders on it, and beyond that, a couch exactly the same as the one Camilla currently occupied. Beyond that, there was a large fireplace made of smoothly cut stone that had been chiseled into designs of the Norse gods.

"I'll see about getting that done Camilla," 'Queen' Tino said, smiling warmly at her, his bright blue eyes twinkling. Beside him, King Berwald sat, stoic as ever, with his blue eyes staring at Camilla without emotion from behind his glasses. "Nice to see you too Berwald," Berwald simply nodded.

A man of few words, King Berwald was, but he was the reason that no one dared to attack the Royal Family or Camilla, and he was actually quite the teddy bear when you got to know him. Plus, Camilla didn't mind his lack of words, not when she owed him her life.

The King and Queen were dressed as exquisitely as ever; Tino was wearing a little cloak that went down to his elbows, made of a white fabric that was edged with dark blue wool, with a silver chain clasp that held the sides together. He was wearing a skirt-like piece of cloth that was white, edged with dark blue wool also. Beneath the skirt, he was wearing a pair of white pants and black boots. He was wearing a tunic that was gold in color that stretched down the front of his skirt, ending a few inches above the skirt, with dark blue diamonds and lines worked into the edges of the tunic, and a sea-foam green sash with dark blue and white diamond-and-line patterns stitched onto it tied around his waist.

Berwald was wearing his trademark black square-rimmed glasses. He was wearing white military-style jacket with a sea-foam green stripe down the middle that went down to his knees, with silver buttons lining the left side, a gold and dark blue badge with a golden medallion hanging above his heart, and gold lines that formed diamonds and mountain-like patterns towards the bottom of the jacket. Gold-colored pads covered his shoulders, with tassels that dangled down an inch or two.

"Where are Lukas, Emil, and Mathias?" Camilla inquired, glancing around the room. The walls were made of smoothly cut squares of stone, and the ceiling arched overhead, held in place by sturdy beams of thick oak wood. The three men were not on the balcony, the glass doors to which were shut, and the curtains drawn. "They will be joining us momentarily," Tino said, "They were… delayed a little."

Camilla raised an eyebrow but shifted a little and waited, stretching out a hand to rub Peter's soft blonde hair. "So Tino, what sort of mission do you have in mind for me this time?" Camilla asked, looking her friend in the eye, blue meeting black. Tino smiled, "As soon as my brothers arrive, I will tell you."

Camilla smiled at that; the only siblings amongst the Royal Family were Emil and Lukas, although Emil vehemently resisted calling Lukas big brother, which caused the rest of the family to make fun of him. "But that could take ages, knowing Mathias," she protested. "How do I know he's not drunk himself into unconsciousness and Lukas and Emil are being forced to lug him up five floors?"

"_Hey!"_ it was a familiar voice, tinged with mock anger and real laughter, "I can hold my liquor better than you think! The only person I know that can outdrink me is Ivan, but he's stark raving mad!" Camilla grinned and turned her head so she could look at the secret entrance into the sitting room, hidden behind a bookshelf that only opened if you pulled out a copy of _The Complete Book of Norse Mythology_, an extremely thick and dull book. Three men stood in the doorway, two with blonde hair, and one with white-blonde hair.

The Rook Mathias stepped into the room, a goofy grin on his face, and his hands on his hips. With his long but incredibly spikey blonde hair and blue eyes, muscular build, and tall frame, he resembled Berwald, although both denied any relation other than their positions in the Royal Court.

Mathias was wearing a dark blue jacket with gold edging and lines along the edges, with white on the inside of the jacket. Underneath, he was wearing a sea-foam green tunic with a white undershirt and dark blue lines on the edges. He was also wearing white pants and tall black boots that went up to his knees, but modified so that the knees were layered, provided extra but probably unnecessary protection while he was within the court. On his back was his black leather harness in which he kept his massive double-bladed axe, which was currently absent.

The other two men who stepped out of the hidden passage behind Mathias were much calmer than the exuberant and obscenely energetic blonde who had come out before them. The taller of the two was the older brother, with blonde hair and blue-gray eyes; Lukas. The shorter of the two was the younger brother, peering around with disinterested purple eyes; Emil.

Lukas the Bishop was wearing a dark blue tunic with thin shoulder straps and gold edging down the sides and along the bottom, with a long-sleeved and high-collared white jacket overtop, that stretched down to past his knees in the back, with dark blue lines along the sides and bottom and dark blue, sea-foam green, and gold pieces of stiff cloth coming out from the edges. He was wearing white pants, the legs of which were tucked into black boots with dark blue laces. He had a headdress on, resembling a crown with the almost diamond-shaped pieces of gold in the front, with two larger ones behind it, along with an almost triangular fold of sea-foam green cloth with gold runes on it, which trailed halfway down his back.

Emil the Knight was wearing a white jacket with sleeves that cut off at his elbows and it ended just above his knees, with gold edging and dark blue lines forming square and diamond patterns along the edges. Underneath, he was wearing a dark blue tunic with gold edging and strings that bound the edges of the tunic together. Along with that, he was wearing white shorts with dark blue diamonds and squares sewn into the fabric, with tall black boots that went almost up to his knees.

The three men walked in, two distinctly calmer than the third as they took their seats, allowing the meeting to commence. "So," Camilla said, "Fill me in."

Tino nodded. "As you know, there has been some civil unrest in the Europia region. Not only that, but demon activity has been steadily escalating since the first of the year, as I'm sure you know." Camilla grimaced in agreement at that; she could still feel where the Yaoguai had clawed her two months ago.

"We have also been receiving intelligence that seems to point to the possibility that the demons are somehow organizing themselves in order to attack, but we are still unsure of whether or not this information is legitimate. So, we have come to a decision as for how to work with this. If you are willing, you and Emil will go out to the five regions of Nordica and try and find out as much as you can about the demons plans, and if possible, take care of them while you're out there."

Camilla looked at Tino for a moment and then shrugged, "Alright, when would we be leaving?" Tino smiled at that, "In two days. I figured you would want a chance to sleep in an actual bed and eat a good meal before you head out again."

Camilla grinned at the prospect, "Tino, you're a mind reader," she said laughing, and Tino, Peter, and Mathias laughed with her. "Of course, I may need a new horse and a map of each region." Tino blinked, confused.

"Why would you need another horse and what would the maps be for?"

"Well…." Camilla said, "Pages could probably use a bit of a break since I rode awfully hard to get here from the other side of Ameros. And the maps are so that I can make sure I hit every holding, underground cavern and tunnel system that has been charted."

Tino smiled wryly, "Remind me to talk to you about slowing down when you're riding so that you don't kill your horse and then run the rest of the way. But yes, we'll get you another horse and some maps." Camilla nodded in thanks and stood. "Oh, and by the way Camilla, you will be attending dinner tonight with the rest of us. Correct?"

Camilla grimaced, "Tino…." A stern glare from Tino shut her up and she glared back at him, "Fine, but so help me god, I refuse to get into a corset." Tino smirked as Camilla turned and exited the room, heading to her quarters a floor below.

* * *

"God damn it Tino!" Camilla screeched, gripping her bedside stand with both hand as she was being forced into a corset. Her servant took advantage of her release of fury and breath and tugged hard on the strings, tightening the corset unbelievably tight before tying it off. Camilla put one hand to her chest and wheezed, "Juniper, you would make a great torturer," Camilla said, "These damn things are going to be the death of me."

Juniper only smiled slightly and pushed some of her brown hair back behind her ear. "Don't worry Lady Camilla; I'm sure this will be the only dinner you have to dress quite so formally." Camilla snorted, "But I'll still have to dress like this some other time." Juniper shrugged and walked over to Camilla's dresser, rifling through her jewel box as she searched for something to put in Camilla's hair.

Camilla smoothed out the skirts of the dress that was part of the corset. The entire ensemble was a deep purple, like that of a plum, but made of silk. The strings on the back were made of white, with white lace across the top of the bodice and a white sash that tied around her waist and into a bow near her lower back. Oh how she _hated _dressing for formal dinners with the Royal Family, but it was still necessary on most of her visits that lasted longer than two days.

Juniper came back behind Camilla and held up a silver hair comb with small silver flowers that had been attached to the comb. Camilla sat still as Juniper slowly brushed her long black hair out before Juniper began to braid a small section on either side of her head. Once the braiding was done, Juniper pulled Camilla's hair up into a delicate bun and slid the hair comb in just above the bun. Camilla smiled at her servant. "Now if we could just drop the corsets…"

Juniper rolled her eyes with a smile, "Not a chance Lady Camilla; you'll be wearing a corset till the day you die." Camilla frowned at that. "I certainly hope not. Do you know how hard it must be to fight in a corset?" Juniper shook her head and they laughed as Juniper handed Camilla her shoes.

"Alright," Camilla said, tugging on the black sandals that had straps that stretched up her ankles, "Let's get this hellish dinner over with so I can get out of this ridiculous get up and go to bed."

* * *

Camilla poked her soup idly with her spoon as she listened to Peter chatter in her ear. "Markus has been teaching me how to swordfight!" the little boy was saying excitedly. "I mean, I'm not allowed to use a real sword yet but Markus says that in a year or two we might practice with real swords!" Camilla smiled at Peter and nodded.

"Perhaps, but you'll have to grow a bit more and get stronger before I let that happen Peter."

"Oh Camilla, will you teach me how to swordfight sometime!" Peter carried on, probably barely registering what Camilla had said. Camilla smiled at nodded, "I will if Tino doesn't mind."

Tino shot a glance at her, a wry smile on his face. Camilla grinned at him and looked at Emil, who sat to her left. Peter had already turned and started talking with Wyva, the child that had been sent from a small island called the Principality of Wy, near the larger island of Australan. She had been sent to the Royal Court of Nordica to be raised and taught to perform various tasks – and not just the typical sewing and embroidery either.

"Emil," Camilla said, quietly so that Peter would not overhear, but loud enough so that Emil could hear. It was important to look as if she and Emil were simply talking and not whispering; any enemies of the Royal Family and herself would surely be watching for an exchange of what seemed to be secret information. "Yes?"

"Have any of you come up with any theories for the sudden demon activity?" Emil shook his head and took a small swallow from his cup. "No, we don't really know what is going on. At first we thought it was just the usual mating season riles, but it hasn't died down and those months are past." Camilla nodded; that was usually what heightened the demon population before some of the next generation was killed off, whether by humans or demons.

"Then we thought it was a surplus in food, or that they had simply stopped killing each other off because they had secured more territory, but that can't be the case. The swelling of demon ranks is not confined to one breed; it's spread across dozens of races of demons. And it's not just contained to the land dwelling demons either; we've had sea serpents and krakens sinking ships and devouring sailors and dragons attacking villages with an increasing occurrence."

Camilla frowned; it was worse than she had initially thought, far worse. Usually if there was a spike in demonic activity and population, it was centered on one specific breed or race, and rarely did it encompass more than two. She couldn't recall a time in her life that there had been more than three demon population and activity spikes at one time. She mulled over this information while she ate some of her soup, relishing in the warmth of the broth as it worked its way through her insides.

Some of the minor lords and ladies below the dais were getting a little rowdy; the wine and ale was obviously getting to their heads. One lord was arguing angrily with another, splashing dark red wine onto the table as he gestured wildly occasionally.

A servant reached around Camilla's shoulder, reaching to replace her empty soup bowl with something else. A paper slipped out of her sleeve and fell onto Camilla's lap. Taking care to pay no mind to the paper so as to not draw attention, Camilla nodded in thanks and waited until the servant had left to discreetly look at the note.

_Demons are not the only troubles Lady Killer. There are people plotting against the Royal Family. Plotting quietly and unobtrusively, but plotting nevertheless. You would take care to watch them closely. However, going to the Demon Prince's lair might prove to be useful._

_-A friend_

Camilla nearly choked at the mention of _Lady Killer_, but managed to stay composed as she turned back to Emil and struck up a conversation about the musicians below the dais, who were at the moment playing some cheerful tune with their fiddles and flutes. He glanced down at her hand, where she still had the piece of paper clenched within her fist. "Not now," she murmured, "Later, when we can speak in private with the others."

Emil nodded and without being obvious, reached over and tapped Lukas twice on the leg. Lukas glanced over and nodded, passing the message on to Tino and Berwald. They would meet tonight; an hour after this dreadful dinner was finished. Camilla let out a sigh; two hours could not come soon enough for her aching lungs and head. She wanted to get out of that damn corset _now_.

The dinner dragged on and on, until it finally ended, barely half an hour before midnight. By then, Camilla was beginning to drag from the exhaustions of the past few days. She was full, she was tired, and damn it did she want to get out of this damn torture device that was a corset.

She let out a sigh of relief as Juniper released the strings of the corset and quickly dressed in a much more comfortable but still awkward piece of sleeping attire. Honestly, how did most women stand sleeping in dresses? They provided no protection whatsoever!

With a soft sigh, Camilla looked back over the note, examining every word, every spot where the ink had accidentally been spread, over every single detail. It showed her nothing more than the message she had seen when first opening the note.

Camilla frowned and threw herself onto her bed, allowing herself to sink into the soft, fluffy covers and be enveloped by a sea of gold colored blankets. She looked at the clock on top of the dresser by her bed. It was eleven forty-five. She might as well get going.

* * *

Within a few minutes, Camilla was seated in the secret chambers, waiting for Emil and Mathias to secretly make their way to the room. They had arrived one by one, each taking different routes in case they were being tailed. Thankfully, the castle was riddled with hidden passages and rooms.

A section of the wall to the right of the fireplace slowly slid backwards and to the right and Emil stepped out of the shadows, carrying a small lantern in his hand. Both of his swords were in their sheaths. Mathias appeared a minute or two later from the bookshelf entrance he had used earlier, his axe in its harness.

"Camilla, what exactly was so urgent?" Tino asked, barely waiting for the bookshelf to close back up before he began to question her. "This is what was so urgent," Camilla said, opening her hand and smoothing out the small scrap of paper she had been holding.

Tino took it and read over it before passing it amongst the other four. "Naturally," Emil said after he had read it, "We've found one thing out but it only raises more questions." Tino frowned as he looked back over the note again.

"This is unsettling news," he said. "Especially the part about the Demon Prince… Do you think…?" The six occupants of the room looked at each other, faces grim. "Surely not," Tino said, "The Demon Prince is from hundreds of years ago; he was killed by the first king of Nordica. No one dares to use that name unless they are unusually brave. Or unusually stupid."

Camilla frowned, "Yes, however, the Demon Prince is dead. Remember, he threw himself and his son into that witches fire that he had his warlocks conjour up." Lukas frowned, "If he did that, he could also have cast a glamour and simply jumped into the pit, which was not filled with fire and escaped somehow. However, that would have taken very strong magic to fool all of those people and last long enough for the Panrasian Army to arrive at the scene. Not only that, but it had to be astoundingly realistic in order to fool the magicians and sorcerers that they brought in to examine the area."

"Yes, but they did find magical traces around there did they not?" Emil pointed out. Lukas nodded grudgingly, "Magic that was very potent in some areas."

"Don't forget the whole part about _'Someone is plotting against the Royal Family,'_ Mathias interrupted. "Perhaps both the plot and the supposed Prince are connected."

Camilla nodded, "It's entirely likely that they are. If that is the case, then Emil and I should set out as soon as possible." Emil nodded in agreement, his hand unconsciously shifting towards his sword.

Tino shook his head at that, "If you leave so suddenly our enemies will only suspect that we have caught wind of any vital information. You must wait until the day after tomorrow so as to not arouse suspicions. Surely you can wait that long?" Camilla glared at Tino but nodded in consent.

"Now, while we're here we might as plot out where Emil and I will be heading first," Camilla said after a few moments of silence. "'ropia," Berwald grunted, his deep voice startling Camilla ask it always did when he spoke. "Good idea Berwald!" Tino said with a broad grin. Berwald glanced at Tino and smiled slightly. Yet another rare occurrence, but then again, Berwald had always had a soft spot for Tino, even claiming that Tino was his 'wife' several times.

"Alright that settles that. Now, I'm going to bed before someone has to carry me back," Camilla announced and stood. "I'm not too happy about waiting to depart, but I'll suck it up this time." Tino smiled and slowly the five men stood.

"Thank you Camilla, you're being a great help to us. And don't worry; two days will pass before you know it."

* * *

Camilla sat silently in the church in the front pews as Lukas ran through the usual ceremony. Despite being severely anti-social, he was a magnificent Bishop and played his role well. Actually, the others fit their roles better than many that they had succeeded. The King before Berwald had been stark-raving mad; the Queen had been a weakling who couldn't resist a pretty face; several Rooks had been corrupted by power and wealth; many Knights had gone on a killing rampage and had tried to kill the entire court.

He was talking about something involving Odin and the creation of the world, but Camilla couldn't really pay attention. Her mind kept running back to the note, analyzing it and picking over every single detail, which she had been doing since she had returned back to her rooms after the meeting. The rustling sound of pages came to ears and she looked up, noticing that the two hundred or so people in the church were flipping the pages of the _Poetic Edda_ as they turned to examine the passage of the day.

With a shake in an attempt to clear her head, Camilla flicked over a couple of pages until she spotted the passage that Lukas was reading from. There was a small sheet of folded paper that had been placed in between the pages. Camilla lifted it up; an eyebrow raised, but opened it nevertheless. What she saw made her blood freeze in her veins.

_Time is running short_

_And when there's nowhere left to run_

_Are you going to cower and hide?_

_The Demon Prince is coming_

_His army is rising_

_But you cannot stop him_

_By swords and shields alone_

_Bloodshed is a demand_

_And a sacrifice shall be wrought_

_Before the Winter Solstice drops_

_Search for the clues_

_Hidden across the land_

_For they might help you save_

_Your precious kingdom._

Camilla gaped at the note, staring at it with wide, uncomprehending eyes. _You have got to be fucking kidding me!_ She mentally screamed, crushing the note within her fist. Peter shifted next to her and reminded Camilla that she needed to stay relaxed and calm down. The less she reacted, the less suspicious any enemy eyes would see her as.

She managed to make it through the rest of the service, but by the time it drew to a close, Camilla nearly leapt to her feet, kicked the stragglers out, barred the doors, and dragged the Royal Family, Peter excluded, off to a secure location. It came awfully close to that though.

"Great Thor," Emil said looking at Camilla as she impatiently waited for the last few people to finish talking to Lukas. "What's gotten into you? Normally you can focus for at least an hour or two but you act like Loki dropped fire ants down your clothing." Camilla turned and glared at him and thrust her hand out, dropping the paper into his hand. "Read." It was not an option.

His eyes scanned the paper. Once. Twice. A third time to be sure before he finally lowered the small piece of parchment and looked at her. "We should set out as soon as possible." Camilla smacked her face with her hand, "That's exactly what I've been trying to tell you imbeciles."

* * *

Peter looked up at Camilla with big, sad doe eyes that watered slightly, begging her not to leave so soon without saying a word. Camilla felt her heart tearing in two at the want to stay here with Peter for at least the rest of the day, but as soon as Camilla had shown the latest note to Lukas, Berwald, and Tino after the church ceremony, they had agreed to allow her and Emil to depart immediately.

Camilla bent down until she was at his height. "Don't worry Peter; I'm sure I'll be back soon. I'll even bring you back a souvenir from the Ameros if you want." Peter smiled a little at that and wrapped her in a big hug, his tiny six-year-old arms going around her like a vise. Camilla hugged him back and smiled into his blonde hair. "Alright Peter, I have to go now. I'll see you soon."

Peter stepped back and Camilla turned to the others. "Good luck," Tino said, giving her a hug before stepping back with a grim smile. Berwald simply nodded, but Camilla knew it was his best way of saying goodbye. Lukas pulled something out of one of his hidden pockets and pressed it into her hand before giving her an awkward one-armed hug.

The thing he had had handed her was about as long as her forearm and tucked inside of a black satchel made of soft leather. Camilla opened it open and glanced inside; it was a relatively long dagger, with a steel blade that had been folded hundreds of times and a hilt that was made of obsidian. "It's been blessed and purified in the eyes of Odin," Lukas said as she looked at it. Camilla looked up and smiled warmly, "Thanks Lukas."

"Hurry up Camilla!" Emil said patiently and Camilla rolled her eyes. "Royal Family? More like Royal Pains in My Ass, or RPMA for short." Tino and Mathias laughed at that, Mathias throwing his head back and letting out great, echoing laughs. He wrapped her up in a bear hug, "Little Flower, I will miss you!" he said warmly, "You leave too soon let again." Camilla smiled and rolled her eyes at the 'Little Flower' part. Ever since they had gone to the flower bazaar and seen a bunch of camellia flower, he had picked up that little pet name.

"Don't worry Mathias; I'll be back before you know it." Camilla said and Mathias let her down. She walked over to her new horse; a beautiful horse that had come from the Middle East region of Europia. It was a great big stallion with the main body being white-gray with darker gray spots, a black muzzle, mane, and tail, and black around its knees. It was absolutely beautiful. It's name was Lancer.

Emil's horse was a big black Arabian that was immense, with a sleek, glossy coat and a long mane. The only way it stood out from any other big black horse was the white splotch that looks like an ink splatter on its left hind flank. And then there was the proud manner that the horse carried himself with. His horse was named Saber.

"Maybe one of these days I'll get you to start calling me bror!" the Danish man said, laughing as Camilla vaulted onto her dappled Arabian. Camilla scoffed, "I'll do that when Emil starts calling Lukas bror again." Emil frowned at that and Lukas smirked. "It's not going to happen, fjols," Emil called as he wheeled his horse around.

With a laugh, Camilla wheeled her horse around and charged after Emil, her black braid whipping through the air behind her.

* * *

**-Chapter 1 END-**

**Hello~ I'm happy you've decided to read _The Darkness Within_ and I'm really hoping you like it! This started as an idea several months ago and I never got it started. Then I looked at pictures on my desktop and I thought I should pick it back up again. And so here we are. Anyways, the next chapter will be up ASAP so until then, please stay tuned for more! Also, did you catch the _Fate/Zero_ reference? Xandra will give you a cookie if you did XD.**

**Thank you for reading and have a wonderful day! Farvel!**

**Translation notes – **

**Farvel – Goodbye in Danish**

**Bror – Brother in Danish**

**Fjols – Fool in Danish**

**(Note that these may not be entirely correct as I do not currently speak any languages other than English. So I'm using Google Translate and various Internet sources. Most of which are probably not reliable.)**


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